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You don’t have to know about theater production, costume design, stunts, or acrobatics to enjoy the thrilling antics you’ll see at Cirque du Soleil, some of the best shows in Vegas. But if the lights, music, and gravity-defying feats have piqued your interest, read on for a taste of some backstage intel on this must see in Sin City.
An energizing Cirque du Soleil production brings the best Las Vegas performers to audiences from across the globe. Learning more about the cast members’ skills, and gaining insights into popular Las Vegas shows, will only enhance enjoyment of each performance.
Las Vegas Performers’ World-Class Skills
Each Cirque du Soleil show spotlights performers who have exceptional skill and sheer delight in their discipline. Each spectacle gives them the opportunity to share their joie de vivre with the audience.
Aerial: Sky-High Flyers
The old adage “keep your feet on the ground” traditionally means being practical and sensible. To which Cirque du Soleil aerialists say, “Ha.” Solo, in pairs, in flocks of glitter-festooned free-fallers, they soar above the crowd, effortlessly spinning and twirling like otherworldly avian creatures. Some even fly from water to sky like sirens or selkies.
A flawlessly executed aerial routine is poetry in motion. Cirque du Soleil shows often contain multiple aerial sequences, with some performers engaging in an aerial ballet, with only twin ropes or colorful hanging fabric serving as their catapults into space.
Other superb aerial performances revolve around one or more trapezes, where split-second timing is the only thing keeping the graceful entertainers aloft. Other performances involve aerial platforms, multiple trapezes, and artists in perfect sync with each other. Taken together, it truly is artistry at its best. For some of the best aerialist action in Vegas, check out O at the Bellagio or Kà at the MGM Grand.
Dressed for Success: Costumes
Clothes make the man — and the woman, and the clown, and everyone else in the cast of the best show in Vegas. Elaborate costumes are a major draw in every Cirque du Soleil celebration — and they’re not just stunning; they also must accommodate the gyrations and gymnastics at the core of every Cirque spectacular. Cast members’ colorful finery reflects a production’s theme and helps shape its characters’ roles, like the basketball jersey-inspired shirts in Mad Apple at the New York-New York Hotel & Casino and the Swinging ’60s psychedelia of The Beatles: LOVE at The Mirage. Each Cirque du Soleil show’s costumes are fantastical and fun, and nothing is off-limits.
In motion-focused vignettes such as aerial displays, costumes often feature flowing fabrics. Cast members in gymnastics-themed shows sport formfitting garb that won’t impede their lightning-fast moves. Many of O’s costumes are geared toward ease of movement in the water.
Costume designers frequently adapt materials from other industries. Of course, they must consider the performers’ safety and the materials’ ability to adapt to constant motion. Space-age fabrics and lighting elements are two examples.
Dance the Night Away
Fleet-footed Cirque du Soleil hoofers help tell each show’s dynamic story with movement and grace, sometimes in the solo spotlight, sometimes in hordes of kinetic energy.
World-class choreographers create each dance to integrate the most appropriate genre. If an audience watches carefully, they’ll see elements of ballet, jazz, swing, tap dance, hip-hop, and other styles — like the iconic moves of the King of Pop in Michael Jackson: ONE at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. Regardless of the genre, the cast members perform each dance with enthusiasm and precision.
Hoops-La
Here’s something you don’t often see outside of a Phish concert — the use of Hula-Hoops as a dance prop. Versatile hoops are a part of numerous Cirque du Soleil performances, raising the childhood toy to the next level as artistes twirl multiple hoops in perfect synchronicity, some executing gymnastics moves without missing a beat.
In typical Cirque du Soleil fashion, hoopers don’t always stay on the ground. As tumblers skillfully leap through two hoops at once, some swing from circles floating high above, with multiple performers effortlessly running aerial routines, using hoops that appear like natural extensions of their bodies.
Having a Ball: Juggling
If there were an Olympic competition for juggling, all the gold medalists would be in a Cirque du Soleil production. Juggling is a seemingly simple art that actually requires studied concentration and coordination. A Cirque du Soleil juggling performance is a master class in tossing balls, pins, rings, and even fire into the air, with objects rolling off the juggler’s hands, back, and head.
Spin Me Right Round: Spinning
No need to put a spin on this: Soleil spinning specialists will make you dizzy with glee. Each spinning exhibition features a performer who executes an aerial routine while connected to a large ring or ribbons.
Some performers languidly glide through their suspended ballet. Others whirl around in a woozy blur. Although single-ankle or single-leg connections may look easy, they require a great deal of balance and strength — but the beauty of Cirque du Soleil is that they make it all look so simple. In O, spinners are suspended over water, and in Kà, they enter the ominous but entertaining “wheel of death.”
Trampoline: Might as Well Jump
A Cirque du Soleil trampoline performance bears little resemblance to children’s backyard games. Here, high-energy athletes launch themselves into impossibly high jumps and blindingly fast tumbling maneuvers.
Taking it up a notch, these skilled performers use the trampoline to execute multilevel gymnastic stunts — sometimes solo, sometimes multiple cast members, executing synchronized moves requiring great precision. Although performances vary in theme, the athletes’ physical skills and dedication to perfection are always true to form.
Wheels: On a Roll
It might be a bicycle built for two or a unicycle just for one, but no matter how many rubber rounds propel them, Cirque du Soleil pedalers can go in multiple directions. High-energy tandem roller-skating and twin unicycle routines showcase cast members’ skills on these offbeat platforms.
Not surprisingly, some performers bring an aerial element to the show, careening off ramps and flying through the air. Other cyclists execute intricate moves while seemingly suspended in midair.
Highlights From Two Current Las Vegas Shows
Each Cirque du Soleil show beckons the audience to explore a new aspect of the world around them. Here are highlights from two current Las Vegas productions that help bring the Cirque du Soleil essence to life and are among the best shows in Vegas.
O
Fluid, enigmatic water is a vital component of all life on Earth. Streams, rivers, waterfalls, and even oceans help plants, animals, and humans flourish in their respective ecosystems. Cirque du Soleil’s acclaimed O celebrates the many forms and faces of water. An expansive circular pool forms the focal point for this exhilarating production.
Much of O’s action occurs in and around the water. One vignette features synchronized swimmers from multiple nations. The young women, supported by a crew of safety divers, come together in a beautifully choreographed formation. In another captivating sequence, skilled divers and trapeze artists execute an aerial routine and water entry to perfection.
These talented Las Vegas performers also showcase their skills high above the H2O. A ghost ship floats in the air while supple acrobats perform impossibly precise routines in the rigging. Finally, several romantic aerial duets illustrate how water can often bring diverse entities together.
Mystère
Children are among the world’s greatest explorers. They bring boundless curiosity, excitement, and fearlessness to every encounter with the world around them, whether meeting new people, visiting an undiscovered place, or interacting with a plant or animal.
Cirque du Soleil’s Mystère celebrates this spirit of exploration. One segment features a chubby “baby” engaged in several comical scenarios. The audience views the interactions through the tot’s eyes without any of the filters earned by adulthood.
‘Creative Central’ in Cirque du Soleil’s Montreal Headquarters
Each Cirque du Soleil show begins with the Montreal-based creative team’s inexhaustible vision. Nearly 400 craftspeople and creative specialists collaborate to bring this concept to life. Next, 50 to 100 artists, athletes, acrobats, and other specialists have free rein to shape the performance. Artists from around the globe come together, united by their creative passion.
Then, highly skilled textile specialists devise and create costumes that reflect the show’s theme and overall tone. Set designers transform intricate computer-aided designs into large-scale physical sets enhanced by special equipment and other proprietary components. Finally, each show’s original music carries the show’s theme while reflecting its fast-paced action. An accomplished Cirque du Soleil composer pens the score, designed to move the show along while stirring the audience’s emotions. Together, these elements define the world-class Cirque du Soleil shows audiences embrace today.
Las Vegas Performers Delight All-Ages Audiences
Cirque du Soleil typically invites audiences of all ages to its Las Vegas shows. Certain shows have a minimum age, which is noted in the show’s description. On some occasions, last minute tickets in Las Vegas enable guests to attend an event with precious few available seats. This serendipitous surprise provides a hint of the memorable performance to come.
